That does sound very, very interesting, Lydia, and I'm glad you got to go.

Lydia, that sounds so interesting. I admit to having mixed feelings about psychics, but I sure would like to have a reading to see if any one of the four loved ones, plus my cat and two dogs, that I have lost in the past 2 yrs, come through. Dottie

Thank you Lydia for posting this very interesting experience. My daughter and I have been talking about going to a reading with John Edward for the past few years. I have never known anyone who has had a reading or even been in the audience but your post makes it all the more interesting.

TFS Cool!

True or not, being able to comfort people who are suffering is a great gift....

Very interesting. I brlieve in psychics and spirits. Glad Joh Edward is able to bring comfort to so many. He seems to be "the real deal."

My husband and I went to see him last month when he was in the UK. Very entertaining and funny. I really enjoyed it. Neither of us got read but as you said many "me too" moments. He did tell the audience that he'd be doing small group readings (50-60 people) and to send an e-mail to his website for more information which I did, I must say I was disappointed in the cost $350. But many of them are sold out so I guess someone is willing to pay that, not me! I've watched him on TV for years and have always wanted to see him in person and very happy that I did I was just disappointed at the price of the small groups, I thought it was taking advantage of his gift but that's just my personal feelings

Rosepetal, he told us about the smaller group readings also.. I hadn't checked yet to find out the price. I figured it would be at least $300., so the $350. figure doesn't surprise me.

I do understand why he doesn't charge $20. for a ticket.. he'd get the hecklers and die-hard skeptics at his shows which would be disruptive. They might change their minds about things though if they got a reading? I agree the ticket prices could be quite a bit lower than they are.

Not saying I agree or disagree, but Google John Edwards Cold Reading...

Tally, I've read it all.

What I wrote above: Might sound like cold reading at this point, but once he started reading a particular person he had amazing hits that only could be for them. He knew one woman's dad was a cheater and that he was an alcoholic. He knew someones child was buried with a Muppet character and that another was buried with a beer. He knew someone was called Superman cause he had rescued someone from drowning. He knew another deceased relative was a vaudeville performer (the lady being read added that he later became a priest which had the whole room laughing). There was a "stripper" reference for one woman. He's talking to specific people at this point and these things came up quickly... he wasn't 'fishing' for info. Would any of those things have been 'hits' for you? They did not apply to me and I doubt they were true for anyone else in the audience.

I am not saying that every psychic medium is for real (I imagine most are frauds), but I think John Edward is the 'real deal'.

I'm glad you've done your homework.

Just wanted to give others an insight into some additional info.

It is really sad the way these scam artists use people who have lost loved ones for their own profit. The Dateline NBC expose and the (Brit show) 40 Minutes showed how he, and so many of them operate. Those shows should be rerun at least annually.

Using common things like "anyone know a Daniel?" (Gee there's an "uncommon" name, huh?) "Someone lost their mother?" (Rarely happens, right?) "Someone drown (had a heart attack, disappeared... just keep feeling it out until someone responds)" and more. That (pick a month) holds a special significance to someone and of course with someone's child there's the obvious, "his/her death came as a surprise?" Well duh! Kids *usually* outlast the parents so it's a d@mn good chance it was a surprise! But boy, don't you look amazing to "hit" on that one! And the wannabelievers always ignore all the "misses" and are so impressed when he hits on someone named "Mary" died! No wonder the Intergalactic BDIU Committee named him "The Biggest Douche in the Universe"!

South Park did a great show on him showing a lot of info on how he works his scam. The problem is there's so many people so desperate to believe that they'll feed him info right and left and not even remember, or admit that they did. He's no better than the identity thieves and email scammers. Some people are so desperate they'll give him anything, whether it's money or info. Can't feel too sorry for them although I do feel sorry for someone who lost a child or other loved one who's seeking some sort of comfort.

One thing for which I'm thankful. My dearly departed aren't stupid enough to talk to the biggest douche in the universe. If they're going to communicate, they'll find other ways than contacting him. You can have John Edward, I'll go with the child psychic, Stan Marsh! Far more credible. And honest.

Here is a link that might be useful: Demystifying John Edward of Crossing Over

Everyone has their own opinion on this matter. If you would see him in person I think you "might" change yours. I still "believe" and I think he is wonderful. Whether you agree he has a gift or just watch for the entertainment value. I just felt the $350 was too expensive but obviously some people are willing to pay it and if he can bring comfort to someone who has lost a loved one more power to him.
Diane

I was hoping you'd chime in, cynic. Thank you. And Tally, too. John Edwards could sit in my living room with me and not even charge me, and I wouldn't believe a word he said. He's obviously very, very good at what he does, or he wouldn't have gotten rich doing it.

You know guys I'm not peddling John Edward tickets here. I just wanted to post my experience since a few people seemed interested when I mentioned I was going a while back.

Think what you will.

Lydia....when my parents both passed away within months of each other back in 2000, my sisters and I were devastated.
John Edward was fairly unknown then, and I made an appointment
to see him. My 2 sisters, myself and my DH went to a private reading out on Long Island. We spent one hour with John.....just the 5 of us in the room, and my sister took notes.
I can't even begin to tell you the amount of closure and relief we got from John. He told us things that were impossible to know if you had not grown up with us. My DH was a complete skeptic UNTIL John told him some things about his family that no one in the world would know.
All I can say is....there will always be skeptics about everything, so you have to decide yourself if you truly believe in this, and if so, it does not matter what other people may think. The time we spent with John that day literally changed our lives. We still talk about the meeting at least once a week and it is now 10 years later!
I for one, am very happy that you enjoyed your experience.

to believe is a own persons choice...I choose to believe that God has given some people the ability to help others...I too think the ones who use the talents God has given them do not charge for there gift..but that is my opinion! I am glad to those who find closure from people like John Edwards and others sometimes that is what it takes for people to move on....Stacy

Lydia, could you tell us about how you entered the room where the group event was held? Were you able to bring in purses and jackets, were you searched in any way?

I saw John here in Reno when he was here in Feb. It was very much like was posted before. I didn't find any leading questions. You aren't searched in any way. No restrictions.

I too found him very very interesting. I also wished I had raised my hand in the beginning with a question. If I ever go again, I will. Those with questions mostly got read or at least it started a conversation that makes you really think.

I was hoping to hear from my mom who passed away 21 years ago and I was only 28 with small kids when she died. I have so longed to hear from her. My kids don't remember her and she was my best friend. One thing I thought and didn't say to anyone or where anyone could hear, just between me and my husband was if she came through to call my by my nickname. It was only used by her. Nobody knows what it is, and it is very unusual. Well, I got goosebumps when John pointed behind me and asked his assistant, one who hands the microphones to people, a question and he called her by her name.... it was my nickname. My husband and I both looked at each other and smiled and felt it was a friendly "tap".... one of those me too moments.

I learned alot about how I feel about loss and how I can connect on my own.

We both would very much love to go to a small group reading but he doesn't do any on the west coast yet.

I really enjoyed it and it was a great birthday gift from my husband.

Although skeptical, I want very much to have an experience that will make me a believer.

Not long after my dad died, DH got up early one morning and turned the TV on. He and my dad have always been very early risers. Anyway, the TV would do nothing but play a country music song on every channel. DH messed with the TV for quite awhile before he came and woke me up. I was surprised when I heard it playing dad's favorite. Told DH that was just daddy letting him know he was awake, too. Freaked DH out! :)

Please don't tell me the logical explanantions. I chose to think it was my dad visiting.

Thanks Declansmom and Cwnev for sharing your stories!

Graywings - we were not searched in any way (I thought we might be to be sure no one had tape recorders). We were able to bring in purses, jackets, some people even brought in Subway sandwiches. lol The doors opened at 6:00 and there was just a very long line of people outside the doors before that. Once inside we were able to sit wherever we liked. My friend and I chose a seat towards the back as the front was already full. The back is the best place to sit I think as it was awkward to watch when someone behind you was being read. I took notes through all the readings, otherwise I would have already forgot most of the readings as he did readings for all but about 20 minutes of the 2 hours.

The stories that say you are asked to fill out forms before the show are not true. There were no forms or papers to fill out.

Moonie, I agree! Your Dad was making his presence known!

Does anybody recall the Peter Popoff "incident" of the later 1980ties? Rev. PP was an evangelist & so-called healer very popular & making Big Bucks in that era. He "knew" intimate things about participants in his audience that, I guess, could only have come from God...or something.

After several years of his touring & TV shows, an electronics expert picked up the correct radio frequency, with the fact that, unknown to them, his wife & members of his staff had been chatting up various audience members pre-show & that his wife was feeding Rev. PP this gathered information via a receiver in his ear from off-stage!

It hit the fan when the radio transmission was later played on the Johnnie Carson Show. Johnnie Carson, of course, was an icon back then & a very talented magician himself & knew a lot of "tricks of the trade" in that occupation. As a result of all this, Rev. PP lost most of his audience (I guess there's always diehards) & went on to declare backruptcy.

I seem to remember reading somewhere that some of these "psychics" load the audience in and then keep them waiting for a while before the show starts. The stage is rigged with microphones and while the audience members are talking amongst themselves - who they hope to hear from, or special memories of a loved one - someone is sitting in a back room picking up the conversation and watching them on monitors.

It's a shame that the scam artists ruin it for the truly gifted. But I agree with Stacy, those with a true gift don't cash it in. And I believe those with a true gift can't control it on demand like clockwork.

More about Peter Popoff...

Here is a link that might be useful: more on the story

I have been a long-term skeptic. I poo-pooed it like cynic does (aw heck, cynic poo-poos everything! LoL!). I DO believe that most so-called psychics are frauds. But I have come to believe that there are some who have a gift. How did I come to believe that, from the extreme disbelief I had? By experiencing it.

For fun, a friend and I went to a dinnner/"channelller" event where you simply bring a photograph of the person you'd like to hear from. You put the picture with the many others that other people bring. Mine was one of the first picked, and it blew me away. There were, of course, some things that could've been generic or otherwise known. But the majority of things said were spot on, with NO WAY the channeler could've known. Nobody knew except me, or me and the person whose picture I took with me. There was no way it was a lucky guess or coincidence. No possible way. And that was the majority of the things he said.

It was the same for other people experiencing that day.

Just because you've read things supposedly disproving psychics doesn't mean that what you've read is always true. And btw, I'm a hard sell.

Sounds like an interesting evening, Lyd, and I'd have gone with you in heartbeat. I'm a skeptic, too, but I do believe there are people who are much more attuned to things than I am and would love to encounter one of them.

I don't have a good question or require a "meeting" with a loved one yet, but I'm sure I will have one some day.

And let's face it- a lot of people on this earth are very convinced of things that they cannot see, on a daily basis. The majority, in fact, and those of us who don't believe the same things are considered the outcasts, the disbelievers. Funny how that works, isn't it?

Haven't you ever wondered why the person on the other side needs a medium to communicate with loved ones on this side, particularly since those who believe in the "other side" and the medium are receptive/eager to hearing from the "other side." That's what I don't understand....Why don't the departed just communicate directly with their loved ones? Why the need for a "gift" to communicate? Why do you have to pay a third party to get these messages? Has a medium ever delivered a message from Hell? No. They are always soothing messages.

I know this is harsh but it sure seems to me that the real "gift" the mediums have is for separating fools from their gold. Losing loved ones is very difficult, and I think it is shameful to exploit their grief for profit.

Count me among the skeptics. I am not a psychic nor do I pretend to be but I have had many people tell me I must be psychic after a casual conversation. LOL

Nope. I am merely observant and I am pretty good at reading a person's body language. People tend to share things with me and I can read between the lines. I also have a pretty good BS meter. The human mind interests me. Human behavior interests me.

Here's a link that explains a bit how it's done. Pay particular attention to the part about how his statements are half-way between question and statement while he observes the person's response. he always leaves a way out if he takes the wrong "psychic" path. Anyone watch The mentalist? observation baby. Plain old observation a knowledge of what makes people tick.

I don't know if I believe in psychics or not. I am open to the possibility. I do think people are equipped with a 6th sense or other but are simply not prone to using it. Heck most people walk through life barely utilizing their 5 senses. Look around in a crowd and watch are unaware most peeps are of what's going on around them or even what they themselves are doing. LOL

I do know this. Someone who really is psychic wouldn't be doing the circus people thing.

Here is a link that might be useful: How Does He Do It?

If these psychics are actually "talking to the dead", what's the purpose of the questions anyway. Why don't they, meaning the dead, just "spill the beans". Do they have such short memories "on the other side" that they cant remember that their favorite dog they had back in 1966 was named Bozo rather than "it might be a "G", no wait maybe something like...

Are these people "on the other side" not sure that the gal standing at the microphone with John Edward is really their great niece, so they're throwing out letters or months of the year to see what she comes up with to prove she's "the real deal"?

So who's playing games here?

interesting

That's what I don't understand....Why don't the departed just communicate directly with their loved ones? They do. I don't hear or see things, but things happen that couldn't be coincidental. Do a search for "after-death communications" and you will see that a lot of people have had these experiences.

Has a medium ever delivered a message from Hell? No. Maybe there is no hell?? I don't think there is.

... it sure seems to me that the real "gift" the mediums have is for separating fools from their gold Poor me! LOL Even if it was just entertainment and not for real.. I enjoyed it as much as my BIL enjoys going to the professional wrestling matches. I don't tell him I don't think that's 'real' fighting, I just say "Have fun!".

Are these people "on the other side" not sure that the gal standing at the microphone with John Edward is really their great niece, so they're throwing out letters or months of the year to see what she comes up with to prove she's "the real deal"? Why would you think the communication between a psychic and a spirit would always be crystal clear? Communication between living people isn't always very clear. :-) John didn't really throw letters out anyhow... he was getting a lot of correct hits with full names (and odd nicknames) at the event I attended.

I've seen a UFO too. There's millions of people who say UFO's don't exist. It's just something you have to experience and once you do, the skepticism vanishes.

Well I am a skeptic and an agnostic. But if believing in certain things gives one comfort who am I to judge. I may not agree with a premise nor am I the person to come to if one is seeking validation of those beliefs but I say if it works for you then good for you.

Whether I'm a perpetual "poo-poo"er or pragmatic, perhaps it's a fine line! Or they could be synonyms. :) I don't begrudge people going and seeing these people for entertainment purposes but as I have repeatedly made clear, I object when these scam artists take advantage of people who have lost loved ones and need consolation. That's where I draw the line. They're no better than the Bible scam from "Paper Moon".

A wrestling match is hardly the same in this respect, though the analogy has some merit. The difference lies in the lies and the use of the lies. Does anyone REALLY believe they sawed the lady in half? At least Copperfield doesn't charge the lady to put her back together! Do people really believe the elephant, Leer Jet or the like disappeared into thin air? Oh, but Copperfield is REAL, isn't he?

I can't think of anyone who has gone to a wrestling match hoping to talk to their child who was tragically killed a month or two before. Going for the entertainment and being aware of your senses is fine. Believe in wrestling or believing in the BDIU doesn't really matter unless there's a scam involved. I hardly think, Lydia, that if someone were to say they're off to rape the mentally challenged or bilk seniors out of their retirement fund, that you'd simply say "have fun"! At least I hope not, but then again, I'm not psychic so... ;)

Some people believe that soap operas are real. Harmless but what happens when they set up a fund to help "Little Jimmy" in that soap opera and cash in on peoples' need/desire to help? That's a big difference in my mind.

Many people used to defend the seance mediums like some here defend John Edward. Are there some mediums, fortune tellers, astrologers, etc that were/are real? Possibly. Go to one for fun? Sure. But really, having a president running a country being guided by one is scary if not sick.

Personally I want to believe that there is some sort of afterlife. Way too much reveng to be had for just one lifetime! I also believe I've been contacted by the "dead" on occasion. I also think that some things are coincidence and some are nothing more than a dream.

I'll admit I've gone to my mother's grave and talked to her. I'll talk to her even when I'm not at the site of her life container for that matter. Something like that giving comfort to a person is harmless when not abused. So I guess it's the ethics and morals prompting my "poo-poo" rather than disdain.

There's a lot of times I've known things would happen, just knew it. I think most everyone probably has the sense in them if they recognize it and can separate it from the rest. But no, I don't think I can chat with the dead on a daily basis, I'm not that big of a fool. But I do think I could scam these people on par with many of them, which my morals forbid. And I'm certainly sensible enough to realize that much can be coincidence too.

I would find it interesting to go to one of these things in person or at least see one recorded and unedited, but I can't in good conscience contribute financially to this thing any more than financially support a spammer. And the biggest thing, I possibly could be convinced, but I'd still need an explanation then as to why he needs to "cheat"! I still can't understand why billionaires need to cheat on their taxes though.

BTW, nobody has been able to answer these questions for me:

If these people truly are the psychics they pretend to be:
1) Didn't Dionne Warwick KNOW her Psychic Friends Network would go belly up?
2) Didn't John Edward know the people would find the microphones? Wouldn't one of the dead folks tell him?
3) Why does John Edward need a GPS? (or any of them but he brags about needing it)
and lastly and probably most importantly,
4) Why won't one of them tell Natalee Holloway's mother where her body can be found? We know her mother is very willing to pay big bucks for info and I would think with the greed shown by these scammers they'd line up to grab it if they could. Or for that matter how about finding Jody Husintruit, Jimmy Hoffa, Amelia Earhart or even Bin Laden? And good night nurse, why not help poor OJ look for Nicole & Ron's murderer? He searched the golf courses unsuccessfully for years, as promised and could use some help. Hey, they could even do a reality show "Find The Body of the Week".

WTH, maybe they should just testify at the trial to start and we would save a lot of money. The dead person could identify the murderer. And hey, once and for all he/they could tell us at which Michigan McDonalds Elvis works!

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go "poo-poo"!

LOL Here you go Cynic....

Oh, Lydia, I myself saw my long-dead father out of the blue 15 years after he died, and heard him call my name at that moment: "Sher! Hey, Sher!" he said. He was crystal clear in voice and presence for a second or two, wearing one of his favorite old shirts, and it thrilled me to no end.

But I still don't believe in ghosts, or spirits, or mediums who bilk people for fun and profit, and I've surely spent my money on goofier things than this to entertain myself.

LOL Lydia!!!!

Keep that handy, Lydia, I suspect you will need it again and again. Geez.

Next time you're in town, let's go get our palms read. I need to know what my future holds. ;)

Lydia, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself and had a nice evening.

I've been following this thread and had to tell you about my cousin who lost her only grandaughter to a rare kidney disease when she was 6 yrs old,7 years ago after a long battle. I hesitated to tell you because I don't remember the details, I wasnt there. My cousin and her husband went to see John. They got a reading almost off the bat and it was the start of healing for them. I really worried about my cousin and this reading gave her so much comfort. I've always been the one interested in this kind of stuff my cousin was open to it and her husband was the skeptic. They firmly believe she was there and was told things nobody else knew. I kept telling myself I would call her to get info to tell you but knew if I didn't do it right now it wouldn't get done. So..

Marcy

I too think John Edwards is a fraud and a fake. I dearly loved my mother and dad and believe that if there was any way possible one or both of them could they would have made contact with me. That said, I have a girlfriend who is a firm believer in John Edwards. We have had friendly debates over whether or not John Edwards is the real thing. She believes him to be. I, on the other hand think he's a sleazebag... but, I have enough respect for my friend and the other people on this board to say that whatever brings you comfort in the loss of your loved one then so be it. I wish we all could find the closure we need.